Gyroscopic apparatus



Sept. 14, 1954 R ANNEN 2,688,805

GYROSCOPIC APPARATUS Filed Sept. 23, 1952 2 Sheets-Shee l f In Ven 70 r @y g 5046er/ Arwen Sept. 14, 1954 R. ANNEN 2,688,805

GYRoscoPIc APPARATUS Filed sept. 2s, 1952 2 sheets-sheet 2 1 my i o warm/m6,?

Patented Sept. 14, 1954 UNITED STATES ATENE' lOFFICE GYROSCOPIC APPARATUS Robert Annen, Bienne, Switzerland Application September 23, 1952, Serial No. 311,130

Claims priority, application Switzerland March 17, 1952 i Claims.

The present invention relates to a gyroscopic apparatus.

Two types of gyroscopic apparatus are known, namely the one in which a rotor is driven pneumatically and the other in which a rotor is driven electrically.

In the first type the balancing of the two jets of air driving the rotor and the centering of the latter are very cliflicult to obtain.

In both types the rotor is always influenced by the frictional resistance of the anti-friction bearings carrying the movable parts.

The primary object of the present invention is to do away with these errors.

The invention contemplates the provision of a ball-like rotor spinning in a fluid support bearing having spherical bearing surfaces to which air or another fluid contained in the hermetically closed casing of the instrument is fed, the rotor being adapted to be rotated by the fluid fed to said spherical surface.

Other objects and features will appear from the following description of a constructional embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings;

Fig. 1 is a vertical section through the axis of the rotor and that of a control knob, the rotor and the flange provided for its support being intentionally rotated 90 from its normal position to show the air distribution.

Fig. 2 is a plan View, partly in section along line II-II of Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal partial section through the line III--III of Fig. l.

Fig. ll is a partial section of the ball-like rotor along a meridional plane thereof and shows on an enlarged scale a device for restoring the vertical position of the rotor. f

Fig. 5 is an equatorial section of a portion of the rotor and shows the air discharge nozzles provided in the latter.

Fig. El is a meridional section of the rotor and of the portions of bearing located at immediate proximity thereof.

Fig. 7 is a front view of one of these bearing portions and shows diagrammatically and in projection the paths of the air discharge nozzles in certain working positions of the rotor.

Fig.r 8 is a View similar to Fig. 6 and shows the rotor in a position in which its air inlet openings are located between the portions of bearing.

Fig. 9 is a partial section along the axis IX-IX of Fig. 8.

Referring now to the drawing and more particularly to Fig. 1, the'gyroscopic apparatus comprises a metallic casing I having in general the shape of a cylindrical pot provided at its upper end with a peripheral inner flange I supporting an annular cover plate 3. This plate 3 and a similar cover plate 2 screwed into the upper, internally threaded end of the casing I serve to hold clamped therebetween a spherically curved Awindow glass 4, sealing rings 3 and 4 being provided so that a hermetic closure is obtained. A circular scale IM is engraved in the rim portion of the glass l which constitutes a transparent portion of the casing.

The bottom of the casing I i. e. the portion opposite the glass 4, has a central bore into which a pivot 5 is tightly pressed. This pivot has a longitudinal central bore 6 the lower end. of which is hermetically stopped as indicated at 6', this bore forming a passage for the air or other fluid. serving to support and to rotate the rotor. A member I is rotatably mounted on the pivot 5 and a split ring 3 engaging a groove provided at the upper end of the pivot 5 prevents this member 'l from moving upwardly, whilst the lower support is constituted by the bottom of casing I. The damping of the rotary movement of member 'I around pivot 5 is effected by spring-loaded pistons 9 frictionally engaging a sleeve Ill which is mounted for axial sliding movement on a lower annular portion of the member 'I.

The fluid (air) support bearing comprises two cup-like portions II and I2 molded of transparent material and secured to the member 'I by means of clips I3 and of screws I4. The ball-like hollow rotor I5 is held between the cup-shaped bearing portions II and I 2 so as to be freely rotatable in all directions and positions. In other terms, when the rotor spins around an axis remaining fixed in space, the bearings II and I2 may accompany the casing I in all movements without disturbing the movement of the rotor. The rotor i5 comprises an equatorial ring I 5' and two hemispheres It and Il between which the ring Ill is secured in any appropriate manner. In the embodiment shown in the drawings the hemispheres are fixed to the' ring It.' by means of circular shoulders of the ring I5 which are fitted into circular grooves of the hemispheres I6 and il, as shown at the end of arrow I5.

Each of the bearing cups I I and I2 is provided on its side facing the rotor I5 with recesses I8 and IQ of small depth which form pressure chambers in which the supporting fluid acts to support Athe rotor I5. An example of the shape and arrangement of these recesses is shown in Fig. 7. There is a circular central recess 20 which is surrounded by a series of ten sector-like further recesses Id in the bearing cup I2. The corresponding recesses of the bearing cup II are designated by 2| and I9, respectively.

At rest and during normal dying of the plane equipped with the gyroscopic apparatus, the uid contained in, and fed to, the chambers 20 and 2| generates: thev rotary movement of the rotor, whilst the uid' contained in the chambers I8 and IS supports this rotor. This may change, for instance, when the plane flies upwardly or downwardly, i. e. when the openings or air passages 22 located on the spin axis of the rotor come into a position in which they are no longer in communication with the chambers 20, 2|, but with one of the chambers I8 and one of' thecharnbers I9, respectively.

The device for adjusting the instrument cornprises the actuating knob 23 and the pinion 24 rigidly connected therewith by means of the axle 25. These three members are shiftable axially and may take two extreme positions which are determined' by a ball 2B loaded by a coil spring 2.9y and adapted to engage either one of two peripheral grooves.' 26 and 21 of the axle 25.

The bevelled pinion 24 is made with a cup-like recessl the wall of which isy adapted to engage a. pin 39' fastened to a. lever 3| which is swingably mounted in casing and operatively con.- nected; with sleeve It by means of a pin. 69 shown in dotted lines, which engages the bottom of the sleeve. When the knob 23 is pushed to the left from the position shown in Fig; l, the lever 3| is swung in clockwise direction. and the sleeve IIJ is lifted. Consequently, the pistons 9 which are adapted' to operate as control members, are lifted too and; close the air' passages 33. The flexible tube 25 prevents air and dust from getting into the space enclosed by casing I.

The arrangement of certain air passages, including the air passages 33', isy shown by Fig. 3. It becomes' obvious from this figure that the air for supporting and driving the rotor can flow to the chambers IS and I9' through the passages 32, 61, 35, 3S, 3f? and 3T and to the chambers 2i) and 2`I` through the passages 32, 6, 33, 34.

Fig. 4' shows on anenlarged scale the manner in which the halves I6v and II of the spherical rotor |51 are fixed' to the ring I5. It shows furthermore that in each of' four blind radial holes 38l which according to Fig. 5 are arranged at 90 from one another in the equatorial plane,

a pressed-in pot-like bushing 38 is provided in the axialbore of which a ball 39 is freely movable in the radial direction of ring I. If the rotor does not spin or if it spins only slowly,V the balls 39 therefore being subject to only a small centrifugal force or to no centrifugal force at all, it comes into the normal or vertical position shownin Fig. 1 because the ball 39 enclosed in the downwardly directed hole will rest on the bottom of the correspoding bushing and be located at a greater distance from the axis of ring I5' than the ball 39 enclosed in the upwardly directed hole 38' and resting on the bottom of this hole. The center of gravity of the rotor is then positioned somewhat below the geometrical center and the ball-like rotor comes to occupy a position of stable equilibrium which is the normal or starting position in which the equatorial plan is vertical. In Fig. l the rotor is supposed to rotate rapidly and the two balls 39- which are visible rest on the bottoms of their respective bushings as do the other two balls which are not visible. The center of gravity of the rotor then coincides with the geometrical center.

' its normal or starting position restored.

Eig., 5 shows four passageways 40 which act normally (as set out later on) as discharge nozales for the air or other fluid entering the rotor through the passageways 22. The passageways 4G' extend in they equatorial plane perpendicular to the spin axis coinciding with the common axis ofv the passageways 22. They are inclined at the same angle to the peripheral surface of the rotor.

The operation of the gyroscopic apparatus is as follows:

A small electric or other motor not represented on the drawings reciprocates the connecting piece 4I which actuates the annular bellows 42 correspondingly'. The'iuid, e. g. the air contained in the casing- Iy with a slight overpressure is sucked through passage 45 and discharged intofthe reservoir 46u Resilient tongues 4T and 48 fixed. to the partition 44 act as' automatic. valves. From the reservoir 46 the fluid, e; g.. the air, ows through the passages mentioned in connection with Fig. 3i and feeds the pressure chambers I8, I9, 20 and 2 I where it actslin supporting: and drivingl the rotor, the; manner inv which the driving action takes place being explained later on. At any rate it may be stated that the air or other fluid is discharged by the pressure chambers. back into the inner space of the casing I surrounding. the rotor.v The flow circuit is thus closed. The uid has therefore an approximately constant temperature. It is somewhat heated up by the pump constituted by the bellows 42.

Before he starts the motor driving the air pump, the pilotY puts thel rotor into` a position indicating, the flying direction. When aplane is started, its longitudinal axis rarely corresponds with the general iiying direction which is to be maintained'. During the landing too' its longitudinal axis. most probably must depart from the general iiying direction. It results therefrom that the white and black lines indicated by the dotted lines 6| and 6-2 respectively, usually provided on the rotor take any position with regard to the Zero on the scale of the instrument.

Assume that the longitudinal axis departs by :c degrees from the general flying direction. The pilot then sets the two lines 6I and 62 of the non-rotating rotor at n degrees on the scale I'll4, this being. performed by rotating the member 'I provided with the toothed crown 24 by means of the knob 23, of the axle 25 and of the bevelled pinion 24, these parts having previously been shifted leftward in Fig. 1;. When the setting has been carried out these parts are shifted back intoA the position of Fig. l. Then the pump is put into operation. The plane of rotation of thev rotor, i. e. that of the white and black marking lines on the rotor is placed, at least temporaril'y, exactly in alignment with the indication of r degrees on the scal'e |04 on the stator, but the member 'I occupies any random position.

Aftera few minutes, when the rotor spins with its normal working speed, the pilot may correct the position of thev member 1 so that the marking line usually provided on the transparent sector 49` fixed to the member 'I will be placed opposite to the indication of the scale |04 on the stator.

The plane is flying in the desired direction when the two marking lines on the rotor frame the marking line provided on the sector 49.

It is evident that this setting of the instrument can be carried out while the plane is flying.

When it is desired to stop the rotor, the button 23 has merely to be shifted to its left extreme position. The pinion 24 is thereby put into engagement with the toothed crown 24 and at the same time the sleeve I0 is moved upwardly together with the slide valve members 9. The outlets of the passages 33 are consequently stopped and the principal feeding source of fluid is no longer in communication with the pressure chambers |8-2I. The rotor slows down and finally stops- The pump 4I or rather its driving motor may then be stopped. As thc rotor is no longer supported on a nlm or air it will come at rest on the bearing portions II and I2.

The parallel circles engraved along a diametrical plane of the rotor are intended to indicate to the pilot whether or not the plane has departed from a given flying direction and whether the angle of departure is more or less than 180, and will be marked as usual, the one being colored in white, the other one in black, for example. These circles play the rle of an indicating hand; they are visible through the transparent segment 49 over a length substantially equal to an equatorial diameter of the spherical rotor. The segment 49 is provided over substantially its whole length with a fine index line which faces the zero of the scale of the stator; it permits an accurate reading of the indications furnished by the black line and the white line on the rotor.

The outer surface of the spherical rotor is perfectly smooth and polished. Only the small air inlet ports 22 and certain other small ports still to be described are visible. The aforementioned black and white lines are engraved into its surfaces, are very near to each other, filled with enamel and polished as is the remaining outer surface of the rotor.

The air inlet ports 22 and air discharge nozzles indicated at 40 are so calibrated that the pressure inside the rotor is practically the same as that in the pressure chambers I8 and I9.

The rotor of a modern gyroscope must be able to be started, speeded-up and keep its working speed in all positions of its spin axis with regard to the bearing portions provided for its support.

The previously supposed 03 of departure from the general flying direction may vary from 0 to 180. If the axis of the bearing of the rotor may rotate in the horizontal plane between 0 and 90 without disturbing the position of the spin axis of the rotor, it may obviously take any position without disturbing that of the spin axis.

Four principal positions will now be considered.

The rst position which is shown in Fig. l, is that in which the air inlet ports 22 feeding the discharge and driving nozzles 40 remain in the field of the chambers 20 and 2|. In this working position the outlets ofthe discharge nozzles remain always between the rims of the bearing portions I I and I2. The rotor spins normally.

The second position, shown in Fig. 6, is that in which the air inlet ports 22 face the very narrow partitions which separate the central chambers 20, 2| from the chambers I8, I9, respectively.

Though the ports 22 are shown to have a diameter at least equal to the Width of the said partitions, they have a bevelled `inlet or outer end in order to facilitate the passage of air. The discharge nozzles 40 are then fed by the chambers I8 and I9 as well as by the chambers 20 and 2|. The feeding is nevertheless slightly diminished, but still largely sucient.

In the working position of the spin axis of the rotor and of the inlet ports 22, shown in Fig. 6, the nozzles 40 move along a circle the uppermost portion of which is located slightly inside the uppermost chamber I8 and the lowermost portion of which is located slightly inside the lowermost chamber I9. This is diagrammatioally illustrated in Fig. 7, by the line a. Some supporting fluid escapes from the uppermost chamber I8 and from the lowermost chamber I9, the escaping direction being indicated by the arrows 50. Some air is discharged by the nozzles 40 in the plane of rotation (equatorial plane) A-A of the rotor, as shown in Fig. 6.

It has been said heretofore that the fluid pressure inside the rotor is substantially equal to that in the pressure chambers. It is, however, true that the pressure of the air discharged from the nozzles 40 is somewhat lower than the pressure inside the pressure chambers. There is consequently at the outlet of the nozzle or nozzles 40, at the moments when they pass inside the pressure chambers, a very low resulting pressure or thrust directed towards the center of the rotor. This resulting small thrust has for its elTect to cause a very tiny precession movement of the rotor.

If the rotor spins at a reduced velocity of 6000 R.. P. M., the four nozzles 40 pass alternatively through the diametrically opposite critical positions in 1/100 of a second.

The very small precession movement produced at the right side after the passage of either one of the nozzles through an upper pressure chamber will be completely compensated after the passage of the same nozzle through the lower critical position.

The above is true not only for the working position of Fig. 6, but also when the spin axis of the rotor (in a relative movement) oscillates away from the longitudinal axis of the bearing portions towards a position in which the spin axis is perpendicular to this longitudinal axis. In the course of such oscillating movement, the paths of the nozzles 40 would be successively indicated by lines as b, c, d and e in Fig. 7.

In the operative range between the lines c and e the air inlet ports 22 are located between the bearing portions II and I2 as shown in Fig. 8.

s The feeding of driving fluid into the rotor through the ports 22 has then ceased. But the rotation of the rotor continues owing to the periodic action of the fluid present in the pressure chambers onto each pair of nozzles 40 during their passage through the pressure chambers, in a manner illustrated in Fig. 9 which is a sectional view along the line IX-IX of Fig. 8. This driving action takes place as follows:

The air escaping from the pressure chambers I8 and I 9 (Fig. 9) acts upon the nozzles 40 as if the latter were blades of a turbine. These intermittent driving impulses are sucient to keep the rotor in rotary movement during an undetermined period of time. Tests which have been made on such a gyroscope have proved that the rotary speed of the rotor in the positions, as that indicated at d, corresponding to the field a, comprised between the lines c and e of Fig. 7 is not substantially lower than the speed in the normal working position of Fig. 1, in which air ows into the rotor through the ports 22 facing the. central pressure chambers and 2l.

If the spin axis oscillates still further, the rotor passes through working positions similar to those explained hereabove and shown by Fig. 7 reversed top to bottom together with the lines e, d, c, b and a, and finally the rotor would again be in a working position in which air flows from the central chambers, 20, 2| into the rotor and escapes from the latter through the nozzles.

During: normall dying the black and the white marking lines on the rotor are constantly located between the, two bearings. Working positions as those represented by the lines a, b, c, d and e of Fig. 7 occur only accidentally and during aero baticdying, and then only for a few moments.

Ithas already been said that the inside of casing I' is. hermetically closed. When the parts.

of the instrument are assembled together, a neutral gas, e. g. dry air, is advantageously pumped into the inner spaceV with an overpressure of about 1 kg. per om?. The pressure of this gas should be periodically measured and restored if necessary. As during the operation the iiuid iiows in a closed circuit it need not be iiltered.

The support afforded by the film of supporting fluid is suiiiciently strong to damp possible accelerations and shocks.

The play of the spherical rotor between its bearings should` normally be comprised between about 0.02 andl 0.03 mm.

It should be noted that since the casing is hermetically closed, variations of the outer pres sure have no effect on the instrument.

The duid support bearings exert practically no resistance to the rotation of the rotor; hence, precession and drift are practically nil.

Amongst a number of modifications, an important one would' consist in arranging the bearing portions at al position at 90 from that shown in Fig. 1', the axis of the bearing being then vertical. The gap between the bearing portions wouldv then be horizontal and an aperture should be provided so as to render easily visible the marking circles of the rotor.

I claim:

1. A gyroscopic apparatus comprising a closed casing, a ball-like rotor, a fluid-support bearing for tlierotor, moving bodily with said casing during operation. and' having two opposite, cup-like spherical support surfaces located on either side ef' the rotor, means for feeding to said surfaces a fiui'd contained in the casing, said rotor having intercommunicating passageways for the fluid, namely a pair of passageways extending along a diameter which coincides with the spin axis of the rotor and serving during normal operation as inlets to the rotor for the fluid fed to the support surfaces, in one position of the axis of said rotor relative to said surfaces, and serving as outlets in another position of said rotor, and a series of passageways extending in a plane perpendicular to said diameter and serving during normal operation as outlets for said iiuid while said rotor is in said one position, but as inlets when in said other position, with outer portions of said series of passageways being all inclined by the same angle relative to the peripheral surface of theI rotor, all these passageways being adapted to keep the rotor spinning and to keep its spin axis fixed in space during all movements of said casing, indicating means on said rotor, visible through the casing, and other indicating means on the casing, for indicating the variations of position of said casing with regard to the spin exis of the rotor.

2. The gyroscopic apparatus of. claim 1, in which the casing includes a transparent portion, said indicating means on the casing being constituted by a circular scale engraved in the transparent portion of the casing, and the indicating means on the rotor being constituted by at least one marking circle engraved along the equator of the rotor.

3. The gyroscopic apparatus of claim 2, in which said support surfaces are provided on two separate portions of the bearing and which comprises a pivot fixed to a portion of the casing opposite to the transparent portion thereof, said pivot extending in a direction perpendicular to the plane of said circular scale, a member rotatably mounted on said pivot, to which the portions of the bearing are secured, their common longitudinal axis extending substantially in a plane parallel to the plane of said circular scale, means for normally retaining said member from rotating around said pivot, means operable by hand for adjusting the angular position of said member by rotation thereof around said pivot, and indicating means on said member, movable together with this member below said circular scale,

4. The gyroscopic apparatus of claim 3, in which the portions of bearing are molded of transparent material.

5. The gyroscopic apparatus according to claim 4, which in said feeding means comprise a pump operable for circulating the fluid contained in said casing, which is hermetically closed, back to the support surfaces of the iiuid support bearing.

6. The gyroscopic apparatus according to claim 5, in which said feeding means furthermore include passages provided in said casing, said pivot, said member and said portions of bearing, and adapted to connect the pump with the support surfaces, in which said means for normally retaining said member from rotating include a non-rotatable sleeve concentric to said pivot and spring-loaded pistons guided in said member and resting on said sleeve, an operative connection being provided between this sleeve and the means for rotating said member, so that these means are also operable for shifting the sleeve independently of the rotation of the member, and said spring-loaded pistons being adapted and arranged to act as valves controlling the flow of fluid through said passages from said pump to the support surfaces.

7. The gyroscopic apparatus according to claim 6, in which said rotor has a plurality of chambers extending radially in its equatorial plane near the outer surface thereof, a ball being movable in each of said chambers, these balls being operative, when the rotor does not spin, in bringing this rotor back into a normal rest position in which its equatorial plane is vertical.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,988,591 Gillmor Jan. 22, 1935 2,087,961 Anscott July 27, 1937 2,142,018 Carter Dec. 27, 1938 

